Love of Jeeps drives enthusiasts to festival
It’s not every day you hear a Jeep being compared to a Mr. Potato Head, but at the eighth annual Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival in Butler, Jeep owner Adrian Jusino did just that.
“It’s like a Mr. Potato Head for adults,” he said. His friend Kari Vacchione, a representative of the South Florida Jeep Club, said that they’re more like Legos. Both meant that Jeeps are fun and have the ability to be customized. Many Jeeps there were covered in stickers, draped with flags or had unique paint jobs thatmade each one different.
“Everybodyhas their own style — You can do anything to it,” said Mr. Jusino, who traveled close to 350 milesfrom Chicago to the festival.
The festival is held in Butler, where the first Bantam Jeep was manufactured for World War II. It began this week at Cooper’s Lake Campground near Slippery Rock.
There was a “Jeep Invasion” Friday down Main Street in Butler, where a sell-out crowd of 1,200 Jeep owners from all over North America showcased their vehicles, the fourth sell-out in a row.
Last year’s “Best at Bantam” was Raleigh, N.C., native Eric Garner, who also won in 2016. This year markshis fourth year at the event.
“I drove 525 miles, about 12 hours, here,” he said. “I like the interaction with other people and meeting everyone.”
What is perhaps most unique about Mr. Garner’s ’91 Jeep is the hammock he hangs off the back. Complete with a stuffed gorilla named Kong, the hammock can
support the weight of a grown adult.
Some Jeeps were historic models, such as Patty Campbell’s 1962 AMC Mighty Mite, which she and her husband traded an old military mule for.
“We got it in Ohio, where it was parked on the side of the road,” she said. “We’ve had it for 15 years.”
This year the festival added several new events, including an invasion afterparty at Recon Brewing, a Jeep decorating competition, a Jeep pull with a weighted sled and “Bantam Jeopardy.”
The festival also brought back events such as a nighttime trail ride to test Jeep owners’ driving skills, a ladies-only trail ride on Thursday followed by a larger one Friday afternoon, a Jeep history exhibit, a “faces of Jeep” exhibit, and a Jeep playground obstacle course, as well as Jeep simulators and food vendors. On Sunday, one winner will walk away with $10,000 worth of Jeep accessories.
Trevor Byrne, another member of the invasion, showed how accessories can change the entire look of a Jeep. He purchased a new Jeep in 2015, ripped off most of the parts and added features from old Jeeps, specifically ones from the military, finishing it off with a mudcolor paint job. Last year, he took third at the “Best at Bantam”competition.
Some festivalgoers didn’t accessorize as much, focusing more on the paint job. With a license plate reading, “QUE PASA,”J.R. Rivera of Niagara Falls, N.Y., receives a lot of response to his Jeep.Originally from Puerto Rico, Mr. Rivera drew upon the culture that inspiredhis custom paint job.
“Those are Latin musicians I grew up listening to,” he said. “Growing up in Puerto Rico, I lived in a tough neighborhood, and they got me through life. It’s what’s best to honor these people. About 90 percent of them are dead now, but they took me through a lot of tough times.”
Now the owner of a construction company in Niagara Falls, Mr. Rivera said that his employees understand that he needs to take the day off each year to head down to Butler.
“When I leave on Sunday, I’m already booked for next year,” he said. “I wouldn’t miss it.”